Couple wants refund after having to sit next to farting dog on flight
A couple who flew on a Singapore Airlines flight is asking for a refund after having to sit next to a dog that wouldn’t stop snoring and farting.
Gill and Warren Press from New Zealand were flying home from Europe on a multiflight journey back in June. The first part of the trip was from Paris to Singapore, which is about 13 hours long.
Unfortunately, the flight wasn’t a pleasant one because the couple were seated by a dog that wouldn’t stop farting.
According to the New Zealand publication Stuff, the Presses were sitting next to a passenger who had a dog that initially seemed quite harmless.
Gill said that at first, the dog was making “heavy snoring noises.”
“I thought it was my husband’s phone, but we looked down and realized it was the dog breathing,” she told Stuff.
She claimed to overhear the dog’s owner informing a fellow passenger that the dog was anxious, and that’s why it needed to be with him during the flight.
Gill asked the flight attendant if they could be moved. The couple was seated in premium economy because they wanted to fly in extra comfort for the long flight. The flight attendant told them there were only extra seats at the back of economy, so they decided to stay where they were.
About halfway into the flight, the Presses started noticing a stinky smell. It turns out that the dog was farting. On top of that, Gill claims that the dog was taking up her husband’s legroom.
She told Stuff that the flight attendants âcouldnât have the dog out in the aisle because they couldnât get the trolleys through, so it had to come in further, which meant his head was under my husbandâs feet.”
The couple informed a flight attendant of their discomfort again, and he told them they could now offer other seats in front of the economy cabin, which were previously designated for staff.
The couple had enough and shifted seats. They also claimed that they were told an incident report was filed by the airline, but they didn’t hear anything back.
About a week later, the Presses emailed the airline to complain, and several days later, they received an apology for the incident, and the airline reportedly offered them SGD $100 (CA $99.04) to use at its online gift shop.
The couple told the airline this was not adequate compensation for having to switch out of their premium economy seats, and the airline got back to them three weeks later with travel vouchers worth about CA$160.
The Presses are still unsatisfied and are still seeking a full refund.
They said that they actually like dogs and have had one themselves. However, they were disappointed that the airline didn’t let them know the dog would be seated in their area.
In a statement to Daily Hive, Singapore Airlines said it “apologises to Mr. and Mrs. Press for their experience on board their flight from Paris to Singapore.”
“In this instance, we were unable to move Mr. and Mrs. Press within the same cabin as the Premium Economy Class cabin was full. Our crew offered to move Mr. and Mrs. Press to two empty seats in Economy Class, which they accepted after take-off. We are in contact with them to provide further necessary assistance on this matter,” said the airline.
Singapore Airlines added that assistance dogs are accepted on board its flights, “as long as they meet our requirements to travel on board.”
“SIA endeavours to notify customers who may be seated next to an assistance dog prior to boarding,” said the airline.
“In circumstances where customers seated next to an assistance dog request to be moved, we will assist to re-seat customers within the same cabin if space permits.”
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